


spinning round round

by pigalle



Category: One Day at a Time (TV 2017)
Genre: Canon Universe, Character Study, Ficlet, Gen, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Panic Attacks, following at some point after the incident in the laundry room, lapslock, or something vaguely similar to that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:47:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27690926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pigalle/pseuds/pigalle
Summary: he starts walking slowly when he get closer, filling with a feeling of dread he can't place. he peaks in, to see if he can see- see what exactly? he doesn't know.but, no one is in there, so he has absolutely no reason not to go in. he doesn't know why it makes him feel worse, why he wants someone to be there — because that is why he felt hesitant, right?
Comments: 1
Kudos: 20





	spinning round round

**Author's Note:**

> this is just a short little thing that i had to get out, but that doesn't really have much plot

he's just scrolling through his phone on his bed when his mami shouts for him, but he ignores it at first.

"alex! laundry!"

"why?" he shouts back, lowering his phone to his lap.

"just do it!" she shouts back.

"what about abuelita?" he slams his head back against the pillows with a groan. abuelita always does the laundry, so why would he have to do it?

"alex."

his head shoots up, to find his mami standing in the doorway to his bedroom.

"just do it, alex."

he feels his muscles tenses for some reason, so he protests again to distract from it.

his mami gives him a look and places down the basket of laundry before leaving the room. an end to the argument.

so, he has to go down. reluctantly he picks up the basket and takes the stairs down. it will take longer that way.

he starts walking slowly when he get closer, filling with a feeling of dread he can't place. he peaks in, to see if he can see- see what exactly? he doesn't know.

but, no one is in there, so he has absolutely no reason not to go in. he doesn't know why it makes him feel worse, why he wants someone to be there — because that is why he felt hesitant, right?

he places the basket on the table from then he was down there with abuelita. takes a moment to breath, because he's short on breath for some reason?

he mentally kicks himself for just staring at the laundry, instead sorts through it to make sure there isn't anything in any pockets. his hands shake.

abuelita really isn't mad at him, right? would she be if she knows that right now, he really,  _ really _ wanna smoke? just a little bit, to deal with whatever is making him so unsteady.

there are footsteps right outside and he jumps. his heart is beating in his throat when he spins around, but it's just one of their neighbours, who greet him before collecting her laundry out of the dryer. he hadn't realised one of them was going.

when she's left again, he grips the side of the basket tightly, the plastic digging into his skin, and tries to breathe. like, nothing is happening, just chill the fuck out, okay?

he manages to get his hands to stop shaking, and walks over to one of the machines and dumps the laundry in. if he can just get the machine started he can then leave.

when he's paying with his phone, someone walks in again. it takes everything in him to not spin around straight away (no normal person would do that, right?) but his heart still makes a leap up into his throat, and for a moment he can't push any air into his lungs.

when he's done with paying he picks up the basket, and turns around, trying to be nonchalant as if he's just leaving. there's a man standing by the tables, one alex has barely seen before. he's tall, like schneider, and for a moment alex can only see schneider pushing him into the laundry machine, can only feel the edge of the machine pressing into his skin. then he blinks and the scene is gone. he hurries to leave before the man can say anything to him.

that was ridiculous, though. he's not afraid of schneider, never has been! sure, he was a little scared in that moment, but that was more of the situation and  _ for _ schneider than  _ of _ him!

it’s fine. he runs into schneider on his way back up to the apartment, and his hands don't even shake, only tightens around the basket. schneider says hi, and then he’s off, hurrying away down the corridor.

by the time the laundry should be done, abuelita is back home, and one pitiful look of his at her and she says she’ll take care of it. he really, really loves her.

(perhaps his mami throws him a disappointed look at dinner, but that’s fine, he’ll just ignore it.)

**Author's Note:**

> [tumblr](https://jennypigalle.tumblr.com/)   
>  [twitter](https://twitter.com/bangpeachchan)


End file.
